On September 7th 2020, the farcical extradition hearing of Julian Assange resumes for 3-4 weeks. If extradited to the US - where granted no “First Amendment” protection - he faces 175 years in a super-max prison. The US, the UK, aided by Ecuador, Sweden and others, are attempting to silence Assange and WikiLeaks. Their aim is to set a precedent that will globally harm the ability to publish information that governments want to keep secret, along with our collective capacity to organise and act based on that information.

The show trial of Assange heralds the intended destruction of our right to a free, independent, incisive and investigative press. The US seeks to criminalise and deter national security reporting in particular, as well as actions journalists take to protect their sources. The attempted labelling of journalism and the organising of public access to information as “conspiracy for espionage” [1] by the US is unacceptable by democratic standards as it cripples the right of the public to know what governments do in their name.

The documents released by WikiLeaks for which Assange stands accused provide comprehensive evidence of the brutal war crimes committed in Iraq and Afghanistan [2], accessible in an undeniable, authentic and searchable form. WikiLeaks operates as any investigative journalist should in the 21st century; protecting their sources and securing their communications in their exposing of government lies and corruption.

As many international experts, NGOs, lawyers, journalists and UN special rapporteurs have observed[3], the documents published by WikiLeaks are undoubtedly of immense interest to the public around the world. These releases have earned Assange and WikiLeaks many global distinctions and prestigious journalistic awards [4].

It is now time to reclaim this essential part of our collective history, by defending Assange, investigative journalists and whistleblowers worldwide.

During the weeks of the hearing and beyond [5], groups and individuals across the globe will be using all the creative means available offline and online to express their solidarity, denounce this parodic fraud of justice, defend Julian Assange and celebrate the protection of journalistic sources.

In many joyful and inventive ways including music, performances, occupation of the public space and wikis, and through decentralised means, we intend to remind everyone of our collective right and duty to hold power to account by exposing governments' secrets, their lies and crimes.

The persecution of Assange is the persecution of a free, independent press, the persecution of Truth and Justice. It is the persecution of each one of us and of our future ability to denounce and combat abuses of power.

Defending Assange means defending our Future! We stand in solidarity and organise everywhere to tell this story to the World. In London, Berlin, Mexico, Paris, Brisbane, Vienna, Oslo, Toronto, Hamburg, Washington DC, Frankfurt, Adelaide, Brussels, New York City, Rome, and elsewhere… Join us!

More information and inspiration about upcoming actions and events all over the Globe:

https://challengepower.info/sept2020hearingactions

More information about the case:

https://defend.wikileaks.org

https://dontextraditeassange.com

https://challengepower.info

The War on Journalism - The Assange Case exposed in a 38min freely available documentary:

https://video.emergeheart.info/videos/watch/f2467447-f5a8-45c9-8d08-804d6a2d4747

[1] see the “new” indictment: https://challengepower.info/superseding_indictment_-_24-06-2020

[2] the releases covered by the accusations of espionage are, among others the “Collateral Murder” video https://challengepower.info/Collateral%20Murder , the Iraq and Afghanistan “war logs” exposing dozen thousands unaccounted death.

[3] they defend Assange and the right for WikiLeaks to expose secrets: https://challengepower.info/in_defense_of_julian_assange

[4] Assange's awards for journalism https://challengepower.info/assange_s_awards_and_recognition

[5] a calendar of various events, updated regularly: https://challengepower.info/sept2020hearingactions